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Monthly Archives: April 2016

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Harborfields High School. Photo by Victoria Espinoza

Five candidates are vying for two open seats on the Harborfields board of education.

Hansen Lee

Hansen-LeewIncumbent Hansen Lee is seeking a second term while board member Irene Gaughan is not seeking re-election.

In an interview with TBR News Media, Lee said he was the best option to represent the community because he is proactive with engaging students and parents.

“I haven’t missed a concert in the last eight years … and I attend at least one varsity and junior varsity sports game per team. I want to be visible, so that when I make a board decision, I have first-hand knowledge of what’s going and what the community thinks.”

Lee has served the district for the past 17 years with the Harborfields Alumni and Community Educational Foundation and as a district volunteer.

He said technology is an area he has worked to improve in the district. Instituting Wi-Fi, and the use of Google Chromebooks in schools are some of the accomplishments he is proud of initiating in his first term.

Chris Kelly

CK-PicwChris Kelly ran for a seat last year, and this year, said he wants to help the district think more long-term.

“Harborfields needs someone to go through the numbers, and I’d like to do some long-term planning,” he said in a phone interview. “I can predict variables and prepare us for years to come, and keep the district on top.”

Kelly has been working in the market data business for the past 19 years, and is a self-proclaimed “numbers guy.” He has volunteered for the Harborfields Get Out the Vote committee, the Parent Teacher Association, and has worked with Fair Start: Harborfields Residents for Full-Day Kindergarten.

“I get to see the glue that holds the school together,” he said.

Marge Acosta

Marge-Acosta-for-BOE-pic-grwMarge Acosta, a former primary school science teacher, threw her hat into the ring. The Centerport resident said she thinks her education experience and “insight on how children learn,” could be used to help bring in new programs to the district. Acosta said she would like to see more science, technology, engineering and math programs integrated into district curriculum.

“It is crucial for kids to have success in the future,” she said of these programs. “Obtaining a curriculum that is developmentally appropriate and effective in preparing our children for the 21st century must be our first priority.”

Acosta is a member of the Harborfields full-day kindergarten committee, Fair Start and the PTA.

Colleen WolcottColeen-Wolcottw

Fellow Centerport resident Colleen Wolcott also entered into the race. She has experience as a special education teacher and said she wants to “maximize opportunities for students with special needs,” bring additional electives to the high school, and develop marketing tools to improve communication and the dissemination of information between the board and the community.

Wolcott is the current president of the Harborfields Special Education Parent Teacher Association, and is a member of the district’s health and welfare committee, the Washington Drive PTA, and the Harborfields Alliance For Community Outreach.

“I’ve gotten in the trenches,” she said in a phone interview. “I know the administration well and I’ve gotten to see how it all works.”

Joseph Savaglio

Joe-SavagliowRounding out the panel of candidates is Joseph Savaglio, a Long Island native who said he wants to use his experience with overseeing budgets to help control costs and improve the educational system at Harborfields.

“I would like to see an expansion of curriculum in arts and languages,” he said, “as well as restore some programs we lost in special education and sports.”

Savaglio has been a resident for 27 years, and working with real estate management companies, has managed properties all over the country.

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Volunteers from National Grid worked to improve the community garden in Huntington Station on Wednesday, April 20. Photo from Wendy Ladd

Everything’s coming up roses in Huntington Station, thanks to volunteers who spent last Wednesday afternoon working on improvements to the Gateway Park Community Organic Garden.

In honor of Earth Day, more than 70 volunteers from energy company National Grid’s Power to Serve program worked to develop a drainage system, clean up debris and plant flowers.

Supervisor Frank Petrone (D) thanked the volunteers for their efforts, including a new rain garden “that will make the garden more environmentally efficient and enjoyable for the many gardeners and children who attend the educational programs there.”

Many other local legislators were present at the scene, including Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D), State Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R-Huntington Station) and Suffolk County Legislator William “Doc” Spencer (D-Centerport). Lupinacci also gave National Grid’s President Ken Daly a proclamation for the volunteer work.

The community garden on New York Avenue, at Lowndes Avenue, covers more than an acre and has 115 garden beds for families to grow their own fresh fruits and vegetables. Food grown there is also donated to local food pantries.

According to National Grid, flooding had been an issue in the garden, so the company worked with the town to develop a drainage plan to capture the runoff and prevent flooding in the raised planting beds. Volunteers hand-dug a 4,000-foot trench to install an underground drainage system and put down rocks to capture runoff and direct that water into the newly planted rain garden.

Rain gardens provide environmental benefits, as they capture and clean rainwater before it enters the groundwater system.

Volunteers also planted colorful moisture-tolerant plants, removed litter and weeded the garden.

The effort came “at a perfect time for Huntington Station, with two redevelopment projects underway and renewed community support for revitalization,” Eric Alexander, director of Vision Long Island, a nonprofit geared toward smart growth, said in a statement. “Tangible improvements including a new rain garden were made from the National Grid volunteers and gave a lift to the garden and the Huntington Station community.”

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Judy Blundell writes under the pen name Jude Watson. Photo from Blundell

She may often write about a galaxy far, far away, but Judy Blundell does so from a home in Stony Brook residents’ own backyard. Blundell, also known as Jude Watson, is a best-selling author of fiction for children and young adults.

She has written somewhere around 70 books since she began writing in the mid-1990s, though she said in a phone interview last week she lost count. More than 40 of those are “Star Wars” novels written in the time that falls before, after and between the stories depicted in the seven films released to date.

Blundell, as she’s known when writing historical fiction stories for young adults, lives close enough to Stony Brook Harbor to hear seagulls and ferries while she sits in her office. She also spent time living in California, New York City, Florida, Washington and Delaware, among others.

“Coming back to Long Island is a place I know really well, and it has really been a joy to wind up in this beautiful place, Stony Brook—it has been wonderful,” Blundell said. She was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Queens.

Her mystery and adventure stories for children, usually in the ages 8 to 12 range, get the byline Jude Watson. The scenery in her hometown coupled with her own curiosity are her major sources of inspiration, she said.

“I think the world around me is a varied and fascinating place,” Blundell said. “I’m always interested in people, overheard conversations, things I witness on the subway if I’m in New York or in Target or wherever. Writers are always looking for characters. And very often, books, for me, start with a character rather than a situation and then you sort of write your way into figuring out what the story is.”

Blundell conceded she has had plenty of days with no inspiration, but her remedy is to power through. She offered that as advice to aspiring young writers: Even if you think what you’re producing is terrible, you have to keep writing. “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working,” Pablo Picasso once said, and Blundell said she shares that philosophy.

Blundell has appeared on the New York Times bestseller list several times in her career. In 2008, she received a National Book Award for young people’s literature for the first story she ever put her real name on: “What I Saw and How I Lied.”

Blundell’s husband of more than 30 years, Neil Watson, executive director of the Long Island Museum, said he’s her biggest fan.

“I have the highest respect for her and as a writer, I think it’s tremendous that she has gotten the critical and popular acclaim that she deserves,” Watson said of his wife in an interview. “She is a wonderful writer. She’s a very generous person with her craft and with her ideas.”

Together the couple has cultivated a love of the arts in their 15-year-old daughter Cleo, who is a talented artist in her own right. She is a member of the National Junior Art Society.

“It’s just a part of our house,” Watson said of art in their Stony Brook home. “It’s the home of a museum curator and a writer. Music is constantly on—all types.”

Blundell spoke fondly of her foray into the world of Star Wars, but also mentioned she had fun writing her last novel, “Sting,” which was a follow up to a story she wrote called “Loot,” about a successful jewel thief and his son.

“It was difficult to write because it was a ‘heist’ book, so the plots are very tight and obviously I’m not a jewel thief, so there’s a lot to figure out,” Blundell said, laughing. “But they’re meant to be fun to read and they can’t be fun to read if they’re not fun to write on some level, as hard as they are.”

Blundell said one of her goals is to write stories for kids who view reading as more of a chore than a pleasure.

“I consciously wrote [Loot and Heist] for kids that don’t normally like to read, what we call reluctant readers,” she said. “So the chapters are very short, there’s a lot of action, there’s a lot of fun; there’s a lot of jokes for that reason.”

Blundell said she is currently working on a novel that will be geared more towards adults, though that’s the most she wanted to divulge about it at the moment. To learn more about Blundell and her work, visit her website: www.judyblundell.com.

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Last year's second-place winner, ‘Tulip Rhapsody,’ by Steven Selles of Huntington

What better way to celebrate the arrival of spring than with a Tulip Festival? The natural beauty of the historic Heckscher Park will once again serve as the backdrop for the Town of Huntington’s highly anticipated signature spring tradition this Sunday, May 1, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Amanda Camps of Medford won first place in last year’s Tulip Festival photography contest with ‘Peach Princess.’
Amanda Camps of Medford won first place in last year’s Tulip Festival photography contest with ‘Peach Princess.’

Now in its 16th year, the event was the brainchild of Councilman Mark Cuthbertson (D).

“From its inception, the Huntington Tulip Festival has been a free, family-oriented, floral celebration held in Heckscher Park. There is live entertainment for all ages on the Chapin Rainbow Stage,  dozens of booths with fun activities for the kids and thousands of bright tulips planted in beds throughout the park,” said Cuthbertson in a recent email, adding “So come out, bring your camera, and enjoy the day!”

In addition to the more than 20,000 tulips to admire throughout the park, cut tulips will be offered for sale by The Flower Petaler with proceeds benefiting the Junior Welfare League of Huntington and there will be a student art exhibit on display near the Chapin Rainbow Stage.

Volunteers are needed to distribute festival programs to visitors. Any person or community group is welcome to volunteer by calling 631- 351-3099.

Photo Contest
Since its inception, Huntington’s Tulip Festival has included an annual photo contest. Entries by amateur and professional photographers will be juried to select the images most evocative of the beauty and family orientation of the festival and must be postmarked or received by July 31, 2016.  Prize-winning images will be used in festival publicity. For details, visit https://www.huntingtonny.gov/TulipFestival PhotoContest.

Entertainment schedule

‘Water for Tulips,’ last year's third-place winner by Frank O’Brien of Huntington Station
‘Water for Tulips,’ last year’s third-place winner by Frank O’Brien of Huntington Station

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. — Explore the Heckscher Museum. During this annual collaboration with the Town of Huntington, docents will be in the galleries beginning at 2 p.m.

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. ­— Student Art Contest: Building up to the festival was an art contest for area students organized by the Huntington Arts Council.  Award-winning work will be displayed near the Rainbow Chapin Stage.

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Children’s Activity Booths — A diverse selection of free activity booths with creative, hands-on projects for children of all ages will be active in Heckscher Park throughout the festival. Design pasta necklaces, get your face painted, make a windsock, make a handprint Mother’s Day craft, get a tattoo, create a rainbow fish and much, much more.

Noon to 12:45 p.m. — Jazzy Fairy Tales with Louise Rogers on the Rainbow Chapin Stage. The show combines jazz music, storytelling and improvisational theater techniques to teach young children music, literature and social skills.

‘Resting Among the Tulips,’ Honorable Mention last year, by Mary Ruppert of Huntington
‘Resting Among the Tulips,’ Honorable Mention last year, by Mary Ruppert of Huntington

Noon to 4 p.m. — Mask making art activity at the Heckscher Museum. Children of all ages are invited to create a colorful, mixed media mask to celebrate spring and wear at the festival. Free on Museum Terrace.

1 to 1:45 p.m. — Casplash, a Caribbean splash band with Steelpanist Rudi Crichlow, on the Chapin Rainbow Stage. Casplash, a.k.a. Caribbean Splash, plays music made for dancing — from calypso, soca and reggae to pop, funk, R&B and more.  Casplash takes audience members on a fantastic musical escapade via the beautiful sounds of the steel pan, soulful singing and hot tropical rhythms. The band leads audiences in familiar dances such as the electric slide, hokey pokey, conga line and limbo; they also teach a traditional  West Indian follow-the-leader style dance called brown girl in the ring.

2 to 3 p.m. — Songs & Puppetry with Janice Buckner on the Rainbow Chapin Stage. Janice has appeared on radio and television, as well as over 4,000 schools and concert halls.  She entertains audi.ences of all ages with her voice, guitars, puppets and her knowledge of Sign Language for the Deaf.  She is noted for her voice, her creativity and the outstanding quality of her lyrics.

4 p.m. ­— Festival closes (Museum exhibits on view until 5 p.m.)

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The former Selden Thrift Shop, which relocated in Selden as Island Thrift, is being torn down. An ALDI supermarket will be built on Middle Country Road site. Photo by Heidi Sutton

ALDI, the German discount supermarket chain, is expanding its business to Selden. Construction is currently underway at 614 Middle Country Road. The new market, which will  join Family Dollar, Carvel and others in the Westfield Shopping Center, is the fifth store to be built in Suffolk County, joining locations in  Lake Grove, Bay Shore, Lindenhurst and Patchogue.

The food retailer will replace the former site of the Selden Thrift Shop, which relocated further west a few years ago and is now called Island Thrift.

ALDI, which first came to the United States in 1976, claims on its website that shoppers can save 50 percent over traditional supermarkets on the items it carries. Customers can use a quarter to receive a shopping cart and are encouraged to bring their own bags. ALDI’s parent company, Albrecht Discount, also owns Trader Joe’s. Both chains follow a similar model, carrying almost exclusively private-label items in smaller-sized stores.

In light of the expansion ALDI, is hiring a store associate, a shift manager and a manager trainee for $12.75, $17.00,d $25 per hour, respectively. The chain is offering medical, dental, vision coverage and a retirement savings plan. For more information, visit the Patchogue ALDI at 367 Sunrise Highway, the Lake Grove ALDI at 139 Alexander Avenue and the Bay Shore ALDI at 1851 Sunrise Highway.  

ALDI’s was not available for comment on the expansion.

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Stop … or don’t
Police arrested a 29-year-old man on April 17 for driving while ability impaired in a 2006 Nissan. The Port Jefferson Station resident was going north on Jayne Boulevard when he failed to stop at a stop sign, police said.

Live-streaming arrest
On April 23, police arrested a man from Lake Grove for petit larceny. The 59-year-old allegedly stole a Roku TV device from the WalMart at the Centereach Mall. Police arrested him at the scene.

Sleepover supplies
A 36-year-old woman from Farmingville was arrested on April 21 for allegedly stealing condoms, body wash, soap and a toothbrush from the CVS Pharmacy on Main Street in Holbrook. Police arrested the woman at the scene and charged her with petit larceny.

Kicked and punched
Police arrested three 21-year-old men from Smithtown, Port Jefferson and Stony Brook on April 18 for gang assault. According to police, around 3 a.m. that day the men kicked and punched a victim, who was later taken to Stony Brook University Hospital. Police arrested the three men near Schafer’s restaurant on West Broadway in Port Jefferson.

Shop ‘til your caught
On April 20, police arrested a 36-year-old woman from Islip who allegedly took assorted merchandise from the Target on Pond Path in Centereach. Police arrested her at the scene and charged her with petit larceny.

Not your Bud
A 27-year-old man from Yaphank was arrested on April 17 for selling alcohol to a minor. Police said the man sold Bud Light at a store on Route 25A in Rocky Point.

Bump it
Police arrested a 21-year-old man from Smithtown for violent behavior on April 17. According to police, the man was being loud near Schafer’s restaurant on West Broadway in Port Jefferson. When police arrived at the scene, the man chest-bumped an officer. Police arrested him around 3 a.m.

More impaired driving
On April 18, police arrested a 35-year-old man from Bellport for driving a 2000 Ford while ability impaired on County Road 97 near Stony Brook. The suspect crashed into a tree and police discovered the man was high.

Stealing for suds
An unknown person stole soap from a residence on Wynn Lane in Port Jefferson, on April 17 around 3:30 p.m.

Missing battery
Police said someone stole a car battery from a 1994 Chevrolet that was parked on Narcissus Road in Rocky Point on April 23.

Pills, pills, pills
On April 20, someone stole aspirin from the Rite Aid at Jefferson Plaza in Port Jefferson Station.
On April 24 around 3:15 p.m., two people entered the Rite Aid on College Road in Selden and stole pills and other items.

Scam blues
An unknown person called the Smoke Shack Blues on Main Street in Port Jefferson and identified themselves as a PSEG representative. The individual informed the shop that it hadn’t paid its electric bill. The store gave money to the scammer. The incident happened on April 21 around 2:15 p.m.

A real Pro
Police said someone entered an unlocked 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee and stole a MacBook Pro from the car while it was parked on Eisenhower Road in Centereach. The incident happened on April 23.

The unbreakable break-in
Two unknown people in dark hoodies tried to pry open a side door to a business on Route 25A in Setauket-East Setauket and pulled down parts of the ceiling to access the building. The individuals also broke a side window to the business. However, nothing was stolen. The incident happened on April 18 around 4 a.m.

Lumbering thief
Police said someone stole a mat and lumber from a residence on Douglaston Road in Sound Beach on April 19.

Swiping cell phones
Someone stole a cell phone from a Rocky Point student’s purse at the high school on April 22.

Case for concern at Kohl’s
A 49-year-old woman from Brentwood was arrested on April 23 after police said she stole clothing, cosmetics, and jewelry from Kohl’s on Crooked Hill Road in Commack. She was charged with petit larceny.
A 38-year-old woman from Smithtown was arrested after police said she stole jewelry from the same Kohl’s, also on April 23.

Trouble in a Toyota
On April 23, a 30-year-old woman from Ronkonkoma was arrested after police said she had heroin in her possession while inside a 2001 Toyota driving on the Sagtikos State Parkway in Kings Park. She was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

An arrest of substance
Police said a 23-year-old man from Patchogue had heroin on him while driving 2002 Chevy on Ronkonkoma Avenue in Lake Ronkonkoma on April 23. He was arrested and charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.
A 24-year-old man from Mastic in the passenger seat in the car was also arrested after police said he had suboxone on him. He was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance as well.

No squatter’s rights here
A 48-year-old woman from Islip was arrested on April 22 for entering a private residence on Main Street in Smithtown and staying there for five days, police said. She was charged with third-degree criminal trespassing of an enclosed property.

Drumming up drama
On April 22, a 23-year-old woman from Fort Drum was arrested for punching another woman in the face three times at Express Drive South and Lake Promenade in Lake Ronkonkoma just before 2:30 a.m., police said. She was charged with second-degree harassment with physical contact.

Lots o’ drugs
Police said a 45-year-old woman from Bay Shore was arrested on April 22 for having heroin and crack cocaine in her possession while inside a parked 2004 Ford pick up truck on Pine Avenue and Express Drive North in Ronkonkoma just before 9:30 p.m. She was charged with two counts of seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

The Panic in Needle Park
A 28-year-old woman from Hauppauge was arrested on April 21 after police said she had a hypodermic needle in her pocket while on Westwood Lane in Kings Park. She was charged with possession of a hypodermic instrument.

Can’t outrun the police
Police said a 61-year-old woman from Smithtown ignored police officers that were signaling her to pull over to the side of Route 25 in Smithtown while driving a 2016 Honda on April 21, and then intentionally drove into two 4th Precinct-police cars. When they arrested her, police said they discovered she was under the influence of drugs. She was charged with criminal mischief with intent to cause property damage and third-degree fleeing an officer in a motor vehicle.

High times
On April 21, a 22-year-old man from West Babylon was arrested after police said he had heroin on him while on Westwood Lane in Smithtown. He was charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Big break in
Police said an unknown person broke into two Big Brothers Big Sisters bins on Main Street in Smithtown on April 23.

Shop wrong
An unknown person stole food from ShopRite on Nesconset Highway in Hauppauge on April 23, police said.

Watch this
Police said an unknown person stole a DVD player from Walmart on Crooked Hill Road in Commack on April 22.

This is not a drill
A 60-year-old man from Huntington Station was arrested on April 24 at 3:15 p.m. after police said he stole drills and other tools from Home Depot on New York Avenue in Huntington. He was charged with petit larceny.

Not quite hospitable
On April 24, a 61-year-old man from Huntington was arrested after police said he stole money from a waiting room inside Huntington Hospital at 6:30 p.m. He was charged with petit larceny.

Car problems
Police said a 52-year-old woman from Huntington was driving a 2008 Ford south on 11th Avenue in Huntington with a suspended license, and had heroin on her. She was arrested at 4:40 p.m. and charged with unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, as well as seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Case for concern at Kohl’s
A 49-year-old woman from Brentwood was arrested on April 23 after police said she stole clothing, cosmetics and jewelry from Kohl’s on Crooked Hill Road in Commack. She was charged with petit larceny.
A 38-year-old woman from Smithtown was arrested after police said she stole jewelry from Kohl’s on Crooked Hill Road in Commack on April 23.

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Northport High School. File photo

By Victoria Espinoza

Three incumbents are up for re-election on the Northport-East Northport board of education and are defending their seats against two challengers.

Shawne Albero

Shawne-AlberowShawne Albero, one of the five contenders, has been in the Northport community for the past six years and has been involved with both the Northport Middle School Parent Teacher Association and the Special Education PTA.

“We need a fresh perspective to help further utilize the talents of our community,” Albero said.

She said she is an advocate for providing students with more detailed report cards that give further insight into a student’s mastery of each academic subject.

Albero said, if elected, she would work to bring in more state and federal aid to help provide more programs and opportunities for students.

Allison NoonanAllison-Noonanw

Allison Noonan, a social studies teacher in Syosset school district, is another resident making her first run at a seat. She is involved in the PTA and SEPTA, and believes her newcomer status is exactly why she is the right choice for the job.

“I am not a part of the board that supported a failed administrator,” Noonan said of former Northport-East Northport Superintendent Marylou McDermott.

She said under McDermott’s tenure, district facilities, like the athletic fields, bathrooms and classrooms, fell into disrepair, and she would work to fix those problems.

Julia Binger

Northport-East-Northport-School-Board-President-Julia-Binger_ABBASwOne of the incumbents, Julia Binger, is seeking her third term, after first winning her seat in July 2010. She has previously served on the board’s audit committee and as its president. She said among her proudest accomplishments on the board is recruiting the school’s new superintendent, Robert Banzer.

“I think we came up with a really excellent candidate that I am very pleased with,” she said.

She is also proud of the budgets she has helped shape, which she said maintain a healthy funding reserve for the district.

Lori McCueLori-McCue-Photow

Trustee Lori McCue is also hoping for a third term on the board. She has worked with the Ocean Avenue Elementary School and Northport Middle School PTAs, and has volunteered with the Northport Relay For Life event.

McCue said she was the lead trustee on the district’s energy performance contract, which will result in $13 million in future capital improvements for the district, including upgrading fixtures to LED lighting and other improvements that will make buildings more energy efficient.

McCue is also the chairperson of the audit committee and a member of the policy committee.

“We have worked to have nearly every policy online in an easy format,” McCue said in a phone interview about her work on the policy committee.

Andrew Rapiejko

AndrewRapiejkowCurrent board President Andrew Rapiejko is finishing his sixth year on the board and wants to continue to serve the district.

Like Binger, he is proud of his work in the search to find a new leader for the district.

“Hiring the superintendent, who’s done a tremendous job this year, was a big accomplishment,” Rapiejko said in a phone interview. “Being able to sort through the applicants and choose someone who’s the right fit was a challenge.”

Rapiejko said it is important for Banzer to have experienced people with him while he transitions to his second year at the helm.

The current president once served as chairman of the audit committee.

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File photo

A 19-year-old was seriously injured in a crash on Wednesday night while he was trying to cross the street on a bicycle.

The Suffolk County Police Department said the crash happened shortly before 10:30 p.m. at Laurel Road and Bellerose Avenue in East Northport. As the male teenager was crossing the road, he crashed into a 2004 Ford Expedition that had been heading north on Laurel, police said.

The bicyclist, Asharoken resident Ryan Brown, was in serious condition at Stony Brook University Hospital following the incident.

The Ford’s driver, a 53-year-old East Northport man, stayed at the scene of the crash, police said. No charges were filed against him.

Police impounded the Ford for a safety check.

Anyone with information on the crash is asked to call detectives at 631-854-8252.

Tuesday, May 3: This version adds the identity of the teen bicyclist who was injured in the crash, as per new police information.

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By Linda M. Toga

The Facts:
I am an only child, widowed and have no children. I have very specific wishes relating to my funeral and burial.

The Question:
Since I have no parents, spouse, children or siblings, who will be in charge of my remains and responsible for arranging my funeral and burial?

How It Works:
Generally, a person’s parents, spouse or children have the authority to make funeral and burial arrangements for that person. However, since these people do not exist in your case, you should consider naming an agent to make these arrangements for you. 

In New York State there is a statute that allows you to do just that. You may appoint anyone you wish, including a friend, relative or clergy person, to make all the necessary funeral and burial arrangements.

Of course, before naming anyone as your agent for this purpose, you should discuss your wishes with that person to be sure he/she is willing to take on the responsibility of making sure your funeral and burial plans are implemented.

In order to legally appoint someone to control your remains and handle your funeral and burial, you must name your agent in a document titled “Appointment of Agent to Control Disposition of Remains.” I generally refer to the documents as a Disposition of Remains Statement or DRS. 

In the DRS, you not only identify the person who will actually be carrying out your wishes with respect to your funeral and burial, but you can also set forth exactly what those arrangements should be.

For example, you can identify the funeral home you want used, whether you want to be buried or cremated, what music should be played at your wake or if you want a religious grave-side service.

You can be as detailed as you wish, going so far as to set forth what food should be served at any post-burial luncheon  that may be arranged and what clothing and jewelry you want to have on when you are buried.

As an alternative to stating your wishes in the DRS and hoping that your agent is able to make the necessary arrangements, you can preplan your entire funeral and burial with the funeral home of your choice in advance.

If you preplan your funeral, you will have the option of prepaying for the arrangements as well.

That way your agent’s responsibilities will be limited to making arrangements for your remains to be brought to the funeral home and notifying the people who would likely be attending the funeral.

Whatever route you decide to take, you should seek the assistance of an elder law attorney to be sure the DRS is properly prepared and executed.

Linda M. Toga provides legal service in the areas of estate planning, estate administration, Medicaid planning, wills and trusts, marital agreements, small business services, real estate and litigation from her East Setauket office.

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From left to right, Jan Argentine, Linda Sussman, Ted Roeder, Richard Sever, John Inglis and Inez Sialiano meet to discuss upcoming publications. Photo by Denise Weiss

In 1933, a gathering of scientists took place at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. The symposium, which started a tradition that continues today, resulted in the publication of a book.

With that book, CSHL started a publishing arm that now includes eight journals and over 200 books. One of the newer efforts is open to a scientific and worldwide audience for free. Created in 2013, bioRxiv (pronounced “bio-archive”) is a preprint service designed to share cutting edge and unedited biological and scientific information by posting manuscripts on its website.

The service, which has been growing rapidly and is supported by the Lourie Foundation and CSHL, had approximately 400,000 page views and 185,000 downloads in March.

“BioRxiv offers scientists the chance to share their work with colleagues who can make their own, often expert assessment of the work that’s been done without waiting for the often lengthy process of peer review,” said John Inglis, executive director and publisher at CSHL Press and one of the co-founders of bioRxiv, along with Richard Sever, who is the assistant director at CSHL Press.

Indeed, in September 2015, two prominent cardiologists made a public argument, through the New York Times Op-Ed pages, that information in clinical trials, particularly those that may alter the course of treatment for patients, should be made available as soon as possible.

The traditional publication process, which involves preparing data, presenting graphics and sending information to journals for peer review, can take months or more. Eric Topol, a cardiologist at the Scripps Clinic and Harlan Krumholz, a cardiologist at Yale-New Haven Hospital, suggested that this data should be on a National Institute of Health website or published on a preprint platform, such as bioRxiv.

“A very large number of clinical trials are open and then closed for various reasons,” said Inglis. “They thought it was a good idea and we now have that category.”

John Inglis, photo at left, is the executive director, and publisher at CSHL Press and one of the co-founders of BioRxiv. Photo by Gina Motisi / Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
John Inglis, photo at left, is the executive director, and publisher at CSHL Press
and one of the co-founders of BioRxiv. Photo by Gina Motisi / Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

BioRxiv, which provides a preprint service for scientists in categories ranging from animal behavior and cognition to biochemistry, biophysics, neuroscience and zoology, also recently developed a section for epidemiology. That, Inglis said, is as far as the CSHL preprint service is prepared to go into clinical medicine at this point.

Modeled after a similar preprinting effort called arXiv that is hosted by Cornell University for physics, math, computer science and related disciplines,  not only can bioRxiv provide scientists with a way to share information more rapidly, but it can also serve as a forum to share incremental pieces of information or a negative result.

In Gholson Lyon’s case, the preprint service, which is housed in the same building where he works, helped him find doctors around the world.

An assistant professor, Lyon had worked with two boys with intellectual disability and who had unusual facial characteristics. After screening their genes, he searched for others who might have the same undiagnosed condition.

Preprinting on bioRxiv helped him find doctors in Colombia, Mexico, France, Germany and the United Kingdom who had patients with similar symptoms. BioRxiv expedited the pace of scientific discovery, Lyon said.

Steven Shea, an associate professor at CSHL, used bioRxiv because of the slow pace of the review process.

“We wanted [the work] to see the light of day,” Shea said. Shea believes more scientists can and should share their results on the website.

While bioRxiv offers a preprinting service, it doesn’t aim to replace peer-reviewed journals, Inglis said. Rather, it is a quicker step between the bench and the scientific community.

BioRxiv has been growing rapidly, particularly in the last few months. According to Inglis, between May and December of 2015, the rate of submissions doubled. The pace of submissions picked up even before a high profile Accelerating Science and Publication in Biology (ASAPbio) meeting in February.

To be sure, the site still posts a small percentage of the scientific information published in its fields.

Early on, Inglis said some journals resisted preprints. Not only has that number dwindled, but eight scientific publications have become a part of a pilot process that allows scientists to submit manuscripts directly through bioRxiv. He expects that number to climb to 20 by the end of April.

Unlike with peer-reviewed journals like Lancet, where Inglis started his scientific publishing career, bioRxiv does not provide editing or content review services. Each post includes a mention at the top that it is a preprint and has not been peer-reviewed.

CSHL makes sure the posts aren’t spam. Before they share the manuscripts with the public, they put them in a queue, where a group of 40 scientists make sure they really are science.

BioRxiv declines submissions that are out of the scope of its publishing interests or that are term papers, theses or unsubstantiated hypotheses, which is fewer than 5 percent of the submissions, Inglis said.

Authors can revise their manuscripts on the site, which has occurred about 30 percent of the time, Inglis said.

A native of Aberdeen, Scotland, Inglis met with CSHL’s former CEO James Watson, who approached him about joining the institution. A few months before Inglis arrived, CSHL had launched its first journal.

When Inglis arrived in 1987, he and his wife Lesley, who has been teaching English as a second language at CSHL for nine years, said they expected to have “an adventure for a few years” and then return to the United Kingdom with their sons, who were in middle school. Adam now lives in Arlington, Massachusetts, with his wife Lizzie and their two sons and Tony and his wife Louise live in Brooklyn.

As for bioRxiv, Inglis sees the preprint offering as an approach consistent with the current cultural environment.

The research community includes numerous “young people who have grown up with the internet and all its possibilities,” Inglis said. “They are very comfortable with sharing in general but also with the embrace of technologies that create community across the boundaries of geography, culture, age and status.”

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